Seven A-10 Student-Athletes Taken on Final Day of 2013 MLB Draft

Release: 06/09/2013

June 9, 2013

Newport News, VA – Seven Atlantic 10 Conference student-athletes were taken on the final day of the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft on Saturday.

Charlotte baseball saw a pair of current Niners drafted. Junior left fielder/first baseman/third baseman and Atlantic 10 Conference Co-Player of the Year Justin Seager was selected in the 12th round by the Seattle Mariners (pick 357) as the first Charlotte player selected this year.

Junior right-handed pitcher Tyler Barnette was selected in the 14th round by the Chicago White Sox (pick 423), his second selection in the draft after being picked by the Red Sox in the ninth round out of high school.

Seager also earned First-Team All-Atlantic 10 after finishing as the league leader in doubles (tied for 14th nationally with 22 at the end of the regular season), as well as finishing second in runs scored (46), third in batting average (.351) and on-base percentage (.439), fourth in total bases (109), tied for seventh in RBI (40) and 10th in walks (30) in the league. Seager led team with 23 multiple-hit and tied for the team lead with 10 multiple RBI games while playing left field, first base and third base for Charlotte, one of only two players to play an infield and outfield position this season. He is the third of the Seager clan to be drafted, with older brother Kyle already playing for the Seattle Mariners out of North Carolina in 2009 and younger brother Corey playing in the Dodgers organization after his draft selection last year out of high school.

Barnette is a former Freshman All-American and A-10 Rookie of the Year. He has amassed an 18-8 record with Charlotte and a career earned run average of 3.37 in 43 starts. His ERA and games started total are ranked seventh in program history, while the 18 wins are tied for 10th-most at Charlotte. He has recorded 148 strikeouts in 235 innings pitched in three seasons with the 49ers.

Yacabonis earned Second Team All-Atlantic 10 and All-Philadelphia Baseball Big 5 honors after shattering the school record for saves in a season with 10. He posted a 1-2 record with a 2.02 earned run average in 35.2 innings over 26 appearances. He appeared in over half of SJU's conference games, notching six saves to go with a 1.80 ERA in 20.0 innings. Yacabonis ranked second in the Atlantic 10 in saves while tying for third in appearances.

He earned the first two saves of his career in the Hawks first two games of the season, and for his efforts was named the Atlantic 10 Co-Pitcher of the Week and the Big 5 Pitcher of the Week. Yacabonis is the first Hawk to be selected in the First-Year Player Draft since Ryan Kemp (14th round, Cincinnati Reds) and A.J. Holland (16th round, Atlanta Braves) were drafted in 2011. That same year, current Hawk Tim Ponto was selected in the 39th round by the Philadelphia Phillies. Yacabonis is the highest draft pick to come out of Saint Joseph's since Ryan Stadanlick was drafted in the 10th round, also by the Orioles, in 2005.

La Salle pitcher Pat Christensen was selected by the Houston Astros in the 27th round. The recent graduate was chosen with the 797th overall pick, becoming the first Explorer to hear his name called on draft day since Cody Weiss in 2011.

Christensen finished his career with 44 career saves, good for fifth-most in NCAA Division I history. In addition, the La Jolla, Calif. native posted an all-time program-best 2.73 career ERA. He finished his career second in program history in appearances (105), third in wins (17), and fourth in strikeouts (206).

The La Jolla product was named a first-team All-Atlantic 10 choice this season as well as being named Big 5 Pitcher of the Year. Christensen registered an 0.94 ERA in conference play and recorded a win or save in 17 of La Salle's 24 victories.

Last week, the right hander achieved Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-America status after being named an all-district selection the year prior. Christensen earned his third consecutive Big 5 Student-Athlete of the Year recognition as well.

Christensen is now the third Explorer pitcher to be selected in the MLB Draft since 2009. Cody Weiss was a 14th round selection in 2011 while T.J. Chism went in the 32nd round in 2009.

Rhode Island center fielder Jeff Roy was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 18th round. The Cranston, R.I. native was the 539th overall pick, becoming URI's 12th player drafted since 2003.

A 2013 Preseason All-American, Roy - who was a perfect 30-30 in stolen base attempts this season - was the only NCAA Division I player to attempt 30+ steals without being throw out. To date, 152 different players have stolen 18-or-more bags this year, with Roy being one of just two individuals to have a perfect stolen base percentage.

Over the course of his junior campaign, the left-handed outfielder totaled 65 hits, 45 runs scored and 138 putouts in centerfield. He is a .327 career hitter who has combined for a .429 slugging percentage and a .416 on-base percentage as well as 199 hits, 139 runs, 70 RBI and 61 stolen bases in three seasons with the Rams.

In 2012, then a sophomore, Roy was selected as the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year before earning All-America accolades by College Baseball Insider. He also earned A-10 All-Rookie honors his freshman year.

Mayers was taken by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 19th round with the 570th overall pick, while Brockett was selected in the 22nd round by the Kansas City Royals with the 654th overall pick.

Dating back to 1995, Mayers and Brockett mark the 31st and 32nd Spider baseball players to be selected in the MLB Draft. The pair’s selection also marks the fourth-consecutive season that two Spiders were taken in the Draft.

After a stellar junior campaign, Mayers rounded out his outstanding career for the Spiders with a fantastic senior season. Mayers led the Spiders in batting average (.359), hits (75), and home runs (7). With that production, Mayers was named First-Team Atlantic 10 for the second-straight season.

The Mechanicsville, Va. native had 24 multi-hit games during the season, including seven three-hit games. The senior also had 11 multi-RBI contests, including three games with three runs driven in. For his career, Mayers hit .338 with 36 doubles, two triples 21 home runs, 105 RBI and 98 runs scored.

A versatile pitcher during his first three seasons for the Spiders, Brockett has done most of his work out of the bullpen for Richmond. The right-hander has made 65 appearances, earning 12 starts. With a career ERA of 4.88, Brockett has struck out 127 batters in 145.2 career innings pitched.

After a great sophomore season in 2012, Brockett made his name known nationally during the following summer, earning All-Star honors in the Coastal Plains League. Prior to the 2013 campaign, Brockett was tabbed the Best Prospect in the Atlantic 10 by Baseball America.